Do You Like/Dislike "Pocahontas"?

[jeremy88]

Well Ive always loved Pocahontas...I remember seeing it back in 95' and I liked it a lot...even though I did a report on the Powhatan Indian tribe and found out the movie is really innaccurate I still love it as movie and for its characters and songs...I don't Pocahontas is as good as a lot of other Disney Animated Classics but its still really enjoyable...As for Mulan I think its funnier and overall more entertaining.
Mulan is number 12 in my favorites while Pocahontas is number 13.
But still I think Pocahontas deserves some recognition.
So for me I'll always like Pocahontas a lot.

[Kyle]

I thought it was an awesome movie when it first came out. at the time, I was young, and oblivious to the true story/legend it was based on, so none of that mattered to me. I didn't even know that it was criticized for it untill just 3 years ago. that being said though the villains in this movie are not very likable. they are poorly designed. john smith is cardboard to me. one of my favorite characters though aside from pocahontas was the animals. especially meeko. from an animation standpoint was was just so entertaining. he could star in his own animated shorts or something like that squirrel from ice age. back to the point though, the movie has many flaws but it was still very memorable.

[Aladdin from Agrabah]

(except The Lion King that I can't appreciate that much because no matter how great it is, it's still a movie with talking/singing lions )

So talking/singing fish and silverware okay then?

The characters you're talking about are supporting and not leading. And after all, did I ever say they're okay? I mean I can stand them while they surround the protagonist- and step aside when it's needed- but of course I couldn't stand a whole movie about fish, pottery etc. And if your second question is; "You mean you hate "Nemo", "A Bug's Life", "Dumbo", "The Fox and the Hound?" the answer is YES! I CAN'T stand them!!!!

[xxhplinkxx]

The characters you're talking about are supporting and not leading. And after all, did I ever say they're okay? I mean I can stand them while they surround the protagonist- and step aside when it's needed- but of course I couldn't stand a whole movie about fish, pottery etc. And if your second question is; "You mean you hate "Nemo", "A Bug's Life", "Dumbo", "The Fox and the Hound?" the answer is YES! I CAN'T stand them!!!!

omg Al, I had no idea you felt this way. A very shocking confession on the UD boards tonight folks.

[Aladdin from Agrabah]

:ja
omg Al, I had no idea you felt this way. A very shocking confession on the UD boards tonight folks.

Oops! Yeah, I guess you wouldn't have thought that a sensitive "artist" like me feels this way for the ultimate Disney "cuties". But I have to admitt it; they bore me to death. The only exception is Sebastian who's A)not a goo-goo eyed little animal and B)really funny and also given hillarious, clever lines.

[xxhplinkxx]

The only exception is Sebastian who's A)not a goo-goo eyed little animal and B)really funny and also given hillarious, clever lines.

Youre forgiven Now if only we could work Flounder and Scuttle into that list!

[Lazario]

but if your going to make a big deal that it was based on an actual event like what Disney did(see previews to see how they promoted Pocahontas as Disney's "first animated film to be based on a real event"), I think you should at least have your facts straight

Advertising is often quite deceptive. I'm still talking about the quality of the film itself, not the advertising campaign. These two things are completely separate in my mind. It simply amazes me how much people can hold against a film's title, trailer, or marketing ploy.

especially when the real-life Pocahontas was interesting enough.

I'm very sorry you didn't get the film you wanted... Well, not really. But again, this is basically neither here nor there. The merits of the film still hold-up, regardless of what bad ideas Disney had in selling it.

had it been amazing, I would've let it go

The film was good, I wouldn't say "amazing," but again, this doesn't really matter. It was made to have an effect on an audience. A power. This it achieved on a very basic level. What was amazing, as I said before, were the colors and the art design. And several sequences stand out as amazing, supporting this film's version of Pocahontas (as historically inaccurate though she may be) as a strong character and the film's depiction of her relationship with John Smith as touching, dramatic, and convincing as well.

the songs were dull, with sloppy lyrics and unmemorable sounds

That's how I felt when I first saw this movie. And few of these songs actually rank as my favorites, but I have grown to like them very much. I definitely feel that they may be considered an acquired taste. But that again just goes to credit the power of the film. I haven't "grown accustomed to them," I simply see something good in them after only a few repeated viewings. Especially "Steady As the Beating Drum." Generally speaking, I agree with you. But that's because now the songs were being used to push along the plot, or to actually communicate important messages via singing. That's not usually how Disney does their musical numbers. Usually they are escapes from the plot - "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" for example is very silly and has a philosophy all it's own, like almost all Disney's songs. But in this film, the songs are providing all a character's background information ("Mine Mine Mine"), effectively building up an entire section of the film's tension ("Savages" / "Drums of War((?))" - which is 10 times more effective than the ultra-cheesy "Kill the Beast" / "The Mob Song((?))" from Beauty and the Beast), or acting as an entire conversation otherwise considered to be exposition ("Colors of the Wind" and that thing that the father sings to Pocahontas about her mother- I think it was a short continuation of "Steady As the Beating Drum"). I think this was a new experiment for Disney, and it's hard to say it was totally effective because it separates this film a lot from other Disney musicals, but it seems to propel the scenes in the film greatly.

the character were impossible to like or dislike as they were bland, even the villain was bland.

You know, I always thought of Governor Ratcliffe as a slightly more militarized version of Captain Hook - prissy, bumbling, but clever. And believable. Don't know what else you're looking for. But I think Captain Hook is also a very uneffective, lousy, and unthreatening villain. Most people don't agree with me. Just goes to show there's little accounting for taste.

why bother making the film in the first place?

Because it was a Disney animated feature film - who ever knew how anything was going to turn out? But many people trusted the animators, musicians, artists, filmmakers to make a great feature. If anyone expected historical accuracy, they would have gotten it with other Disney features I mentioned - Melody Time and Peter Pan. But they didn't. Why should Disney break tradition? The most important thing was to tell a good story, regardless of what they were actually doing with the History of the Source of it.

The important thing for the film was that they told a great story.

Which they didn't do here.

That's your "opinion." And one I don't happen to think is based on much actual thinking at all. You still seem to be reacting to Disney's decision not to work from history. All things considered, being fair here... Disney did what they always did and it resulted in a better than average product. Average of course being something like... The Aristocats. You will never understand this movie until you realize you're forgetting Disney's history. It was never important to them to be historically accurate. What was always valued most was to tell a "happy" story with conflicts that always had an uplifting ending. And that they certainly did with this film, only they managed to tell a good story, with a new idea or twist on what was history. Anything with Disney is fair game - anything goes. I still don't see much of a problem. It sounds like you have more of an issue with what Disney gave to children and families as "truth" that turned out to be fictionalized. But there was never any malice with that intention. It's just Disney as usual. Sometimes, real history is just too depressing, or complicated, for children and families to completely digest with an animated musical. If that's why they changed it, I agree with their decision.

[akhenaten]

i dont understand why audience expect an over the top villain in EVERY SINGLE MOVIE. some movie requires a certain kind of threat. for pocahontas, i think ratcliffe works just as fine. i can feel the danger of his authoritative manner. he may not be a wizard or a king but he holds such power that people r willing to trust him on the expedition. i like powhatan's subtlety more than triton. i can relate to powhatan as a human being, especially like my father.apparently triton's prejudice against human is just not realistic enough to root for.the whole issue between ariel and her father is to some point a baseless argument. but hey it's a fairy tale. i like how the directors tackle the forbidden relationship between the natives and the settlers. for me, pocahontas rocks at #1 11 years on!

p/s: i don't hate TLM.

[SpringHeelJack]

When I first saw it at age 9, I was pretty unenthusiastic about it. I don't think I really cared for the story, and I was too young to appreciate the realism they were going for and to catch the music, plus it had the stigma of being a "girl's movie", which can very influential on a young mind.

Ten years later, I got the DVD for Christmas and actually appreciate it alot more. The music had become more memorable to me, and I find the style very artistically ambitious, like most of the Disney films of the mid-late 90's. While it is essentially "Romeo and Juliet" set in the 1600's, it did say "based on" a true story, and that really can give you alot of wiggle room. As for Ratcliffe, I like him. It's kinda interesting to have a villain who's not magic and just a nasty, greedy, self-interested guy, as not all people have a deep psychological motive for their actions.

Oh, and it's also 100x better with "If I Never Knew You" back in. I love that song so much, and am still kind of upset it was cut to begin with.

[Disney's Divinity]

i dont understand why audience expect an over the top villain in EVERY SINGLE MOVIE. some movie requires a certain kind of threat. for pocahontas, i think ratcliffe works just as fine. i can feel the danger of his authoritative manner. he may not be a wizard or a king but he holds such power that people r willing to trust him on the expedition.

I agree that not ever villain needs an over the top villain. It's just that I can't take Ratcliffe seriously. He's not very menacing at all. I expected something along the lines of Frollo, who isn't over the top, but is threatening all the same.

i like powhatan's subtlety more than triton. i can relate to powhatan as a human being, especially like my father.apparently triton's prejudice against human is just not realistic enough to root for.the whole issue between ariel and her father is to some point a baseless argument.

The audience has to assume that there have been mermaids who've been captured/hurt by humans for us to understand Triton's argument. Still, to me, Triton and Powhatan are exactly the same character with different names.

I don't dislike Pocahontas, but it's not one of my favorites either. I find the design very horrid (I know this is a matter of opinion) to look at. I give it credit for being the first movie not to end with a perfectly "happily ever after" feeling though. As for music, I love love LOVE Judy Kuhn's voice, but I hat Colors of the Wind. Just Around the Riverbend is a much lovelier song that, for some reason, seems to get pushed over for the former most of the time.

[DARTH KNITE]

I for one, love this movie and know several people who do as well. This started Disney's more realistic storylines of love stories that don't really work out. I liked this because I think that is every beat as important a message for a child to learn as following your dreams is. No, it's not accurate, but on it's own I think it is really one of their best. Amazing animation and one of, if not my favorite scores. I was 11 when this film was released and even then I appreciated the studios turn towards more mature subject matter. This is why "Hunchback" has been my favorite for 10 years now and "Hercules" ticked me off so much (haha).

[my chicken is infected]

I don't understand why Pocahontas is so maligned either, or why it's considered Disney's downfall. I personally find it to be one of their best films. I don't date Disney's downfall until 1999 with Tarzan. I honestly prefer Tarzan's soundtrack to the movie.

I think Pocahontas not only has one of the best love stories and some of the best themes in recent Disney history, but the design is sort of a nod to the graphic design of Sleeping Beauty, which I love. And the musical score is one of Disney's finest.

[Aladdin from Agrabah]

Youre forgiven Now if only we could work Flounder and Scuttle into that list!

Oh, okay. They're Ariel's buddies after all so I think I'm gonna make an exception. It's -along with Aladdin- my favourite movie.

[xxhplinkxx]

Youre forgiven Now if only we could work Flounder and Scuttle into that list!

Oh, okay. They're Ariel's buddies after all so I think I'm gonna make an exception. It's -along with Aladdin- my favourite movie.

WOO-HOO!!



OK, Im happy now

[SpringHeelJack]

I don't understand why Pocahontas is so maligned either, or why it's considered Disney's downfall. I personally find it to be one of their best films. I don't date Disney's downfall until 1999 with Tarzan. I honestly prefer Tarzan's soundtrack to the movie.

Personally, I view Tarzan's soundtrack as the main reason why it begin's Disney's downfall. Anything with Phil Collins...just automatically knocks it down several notches.

[mlvc6969]

I just recently started to collect Disney DVD's and I actually watched Pocahontas for the first time this morning and I thought it was a great movie. It was better than I thought it would be...I now have to watch Mulan for the first time later tonight and I am not too sure if I will like that one. Pocahontas had a great story and great songs and some beautiful animation.

[Lazario]

I think Pocahontas not only has one of the best love stories and some of the best themes in recent Disney history, but the design is sort of a nod to the graphic design of Sleeping Beauty, which I love. And the musical score is one of Disney's finest.

I was watching the Making-of featurette on the 1997 Masterpiece Collection VHS for Sleeping Beauty, and the directors of Pocahontas were talking about how Sleeping Beauty influenced the making of that film.

[Sindacco]

Why are some of you so upset that they re-wrote history? The dannish people didn't get upset when Disney re-wrote The Little Mermaid. Everytime I see people beeing critical to Disney, it's allways americans. Why do they allways get so indignant about everything.

[Big Disney Fan]

I wouldn't necessarily call it an all-time favorite of mine, but it's not bad.

[tinlunlau]

my memory has been vague since i saw pocahontas in the theatres but i would love to see this again dubbed in Cantonese. it features the voice of Andy Lau, one of my favorite actors from Hong Kong as John Smith. some of you may recognize the name in films like "Infernal Affairs" and "House of Flying Daggers".